Humpridge track (Great Walk New Zealand)

The Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track is the latest incorporation to the list of Great Walks in New Zealand.
Although it's run by a private, non for profit organization, the Tuatapere Hump Track Ltd, the Department Of Conservation (DOC) is already making improvements to make sure it meets DOC standards for a Great Walk.
You can walk the track on your own, but the only places you can sleep are the lodges from the Tuatapere Hump Track organization.
There are several options to walk the track, even taking a helicopter, and the cheapest one is what they call the Freedom Walk where you basically walk on your own and pay only for the accommodation at the lodges.

Important mentioning that the lodges operate only half of the year. The season is from October 21st to April 22nd.

The Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track is a 62 kilometres track, a bit less by my own experience, usually walked counterclockwise in 3 days/two nights.

• Day 1: From Rarakau car park to Okaka Lodge
  21 Km (7 to 9 hours)
  My time was 5 and a half hours plus another 30 minutes for the circuit at the top
  


• Day 2: From Okaka Lodge to Port Craig Lodge
  21 Km (7-9 hours)
  It took me 5 hours from lodge to lodge
  


• Day 3: From Port Craig Lodge back to Rarakau car park
  20 Km (5-7 hours)
  Day three took me 4 hours
  

The track starts at Rarakau car park. Before getting there they expect you to check in at the organization's office in Tuatapere (31 Orawia Road). They will give you the accommodation passes, some maps, a briefing and also the latest updates on the weather. You also have to check out on the last day once you are done. This way they know you are on the track, expect you on the lodges and search for you if you don't show up.

To get to Rarakau car park you can either drive on your car or pay them to give you a ride in one of their vans.
From the office to Rarakau car park there are 23 kilometres being the last 7.5 kilometres of gravel road. If you decide to drive and you are following Google Maps just be careful when, after a couple of kilometres on the gravel road it may want to get you off to the left to Bluecliffs Beach. Just stay on the gravel road and you will get to Rarakau car park. I just checked and it seems that Google Maps has fixed this so you probably don't have to worry about this anymore.

Rarakau car park is a private parking and they expect you to leave some money in an honesty box. The guy at the organization told me 5 dollars is fine so that's what I left.
There is a toilet at the Rarakau car park just in case you need it before getting into the track.

We get ready and after covering the 300 metres from the car park to the official start of the Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track we finally start the hike.

• Day 1: From Rarakau car park to Okaka Lodge
  As soon as you start you get into the forest and after 3 kilometres you get to the Waikoau bridge. Once you cross it and after another 500 metres you have the option to continue on the track or walk on the beach. The track might be muddy or wet at some spots. On the other hand, if the tide is high it might not be so easy to walk on the beach. Your choice.
  After 3 kilometres the beach is over and you get back to the forest.
  3.3 kilometres later, 9.5 kilometres counting from the start of the track, you get to the junction to start the main loop. We make a right turn here to start our ascent to Okaka Lodge. On day three we will be getting back to this junction when closing the loop.
  
  The first 4.5 kilometres after the junction have a mild slope and they end at the Water Bridge shelter. At this place there is also a toilet and a few meters beyond the shelter there is a small wooden bridge where you will find a tin cup with a string tied to it and to the bridge. Use it to get fresh water from the river and fill out your bottles since the real hard ascent starts here.
  In front of us we have 5.2 kilometres of steep terrain inside the forest where we need to gain 750 meters of elevation in order to get to the lodge.
  1.5 kilometres before getting to the Okaka Lodge we get a short relief on the ascent when arriving to Stag Point. At this spot you briefly get out of the forest and have direct views of the Okaka Lodge for the first time. You can also enjoy great views of the coastline.
  
  Once you finally get to the top you need to go down a few meters to get to the lodge. At the lodge you can leave your heavy backpack and start the short stroll around the ridge. It's fairly short, 1.5 kilometres, and quite enjoyable. Even more without any extra weight from the backpack. It's a loop where you can enjoy nice rock formations, tarns (small ponds) and fantastic views. From Willets lookout you have wonderful views of the coastline. You also have nice views of the other side of the mountains and Poteriteri lake.
  
  Okaka Lodge is also located in a superb spot from where to enjoy great views while enjoying a hot drink.
  Have a well-deserved hot shower and relax having some dinner and reading a book. Note that the shower is only included if you paid for it. They also provided a clean towel for me.
  
  


• Day 2: From Okaka Lodge to Port Craig Lodge
  After enjoying a hot coffee and a fantastic porridge, both included in the price, we get ready and back on the track.
  Day two is basically all the way down following the ridge for 10 kilometres and then flat for another 8.7 kilometres to get to Port Craig Lodge.
  The views from the ridge are really fantastic. This part is in my opinion the best part of the whole track. You will find lots of sections with wooden boardwalks that make walking easier. After 6 kilometres down the ridge you get to Luncheon Rock. Enjoy the magnificent views from this spot. There is also a shelter with a drinking water container and a toilet.
  
  The ridge and the descent ends at the Edwin burn viaduct. This is the first of 3 impressive wooden bridges: Edwin burn, Percy Burn and Sand hill viaduct. All three are spectacular but the biggest one and most impressive is Percy Burn.
  After crossing Percy Burn viaduct you will find a hut, which I found closed, a toilet that was open and a container with drinking water.
  Enjoy the 3 viaducts because they are the stars of the Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track.
  
  6.5 kilometres after crossing the third viaduct we get to Port Craig Lodge. We leave the backpack at the lodge, get on our swimsuit and head down towards the beautiful Port Craig beach to enjoy a relaxing and well-deserved swim. If you are lucky you will spot some dusky dolphins that apparently come quite often to this beach. The day I was there I did spot a group of them and some people from the group were even so lucky to swim fairly close to them. This is another of the highlights of this track.
  Note that there are quite a few sandflies by this beach so better don't take too long to get in and out of the water.
  
  Back at the lodge, I got a hot shower and had some dinner before enjoying some relaxing time while reading a book before going to bed.
  


• Day 3: From Port Craig Lodge back to Rarakau car park
  We start walking after our morning coffee and porridge. This third day is about the same distance as the previous two but you will cover it faster since it's easier and, except for a few spots here and there, it's pretty much all flat.
  
  You will encounter the first toilet after about 5 kilometres, on your left-hand side right after crossing a bridge. Even though it's called Camp Creek there is nothing else but the toilet there.
  
  3 kilometres further on the track you will get to Blowhole beach, the first of the beaches you'll be crossing. Blowhole beach is the largest of all of them. About 300 meters further you get to the second of the beaches, this one being smaller. You have to calculate a bit the tide times for crossing these two beaches. Apparently you cannot cross them 15 minutes before or after high tide. The warden at Port Craig Lodge will tell you when the high tides are.
  We continue on the track and soon we get to the junction that closes the big loop. From this point onwards the track is already known to us and about 9.5 kilometres later we are back at the car.
  

In summary, this is a nice track, well maintained as you'll expect from a Great Walk in New Zealand and with nice views and bridges to cross. Lot's of wooden boardwalk sections, especially the second day going down the ridge, and DOC is still adding some more.
The whole trip is quite well organized, lots of information is available and the people at the lodges are really friendly. At the lodges you will find gas stoves and all cooking equipment provided.
All three days cover about the same distance but it gets easier after each day. The first day is the hardest with the climb, the second day is much easier and the third day even easier. As a curiosity, the total time for me was about 15 hours and 15 minutes.

Note mentioning that the Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track does not go up The Hump (1607 m). The closest you get is near Okaka Lodge which is over 6 kilometres from The Hump summit.
Have a look at this track if getting to the top of The Hump is what you are after.
Another alternative is to combine both tracks, and I know one person who did it. You can follow this track to go up to the top of The Hump and then follow the ridge down to Okaka Lodge, and from there join the Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track.